Blossom of the Sun
by jesokaa
Summary: Under the red and yellow rays of the sun, an orange blossom is waiting to bloom. A collection of Namikaze/Uzumaki family one-shots. Length and rating may vary.


_**Blossom of the Sun**_

**A/N: I have planned to write a series of one-shots including Naruto with both or one of his parents. The main relationship that I will focus on will be the father/son duo; however, Kushina is too awesome not to include. These one shots will be unrelated, unless specified, and they will vary in length. There needs to be more Namikaze/Uzumaki family fan-fiction!**

**Disclaimer: I tried to buy the rights, but I am too poor; therefore, I failed.**

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**Chapter 1:**** Nightmares****_  
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"Fear defeats more people than any other one thing in the world"- Ralph Waldo Emerson

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Despite the overwhelming amount of people who had reassured him that there was always light within the dark, Naruto had quickly come to the conclusion that this statement was most definitely false. After six long years of life, Naruto had learned that some darkness lacked light. His parents, Minato in particular, had always taken the time to try to reassure him that there was nothing to be afraid of, but Naruto's nightmares said otherwise.

Naruto was an extremely happy child, who radiated joy and life from every pore, but each night his whole demeanor changed.

The light had to be on throughout the entire night, and Minato had to stay by his side until Naruto fell asleep. If this schedule was broken, Naruto would typically be unable to fall asleep, despite Kushina's efforts to comfort him. Sometimes, he would fall asleep from pure exhaustion, but that often resulted in horrific nightmares that would leave Naruto in a terrified state of mind for several hours.

This particular evening happened to be one of those moments.

Minato, as the Yondaime Hokage, had many responsibilities to uphold, and sometimes he found it quite difficult to be home at a decent hour; however, when he was held up at work, he always found himself worrying about Naruto and whether or not he was okay. He was not sure why, but for the past two years, Naruto had had reoccurring nightmares that often involved horrific creatures. Naruto had described them as black clawed beasts. He claimed that they tried to take Minato and Kushina from Naruto, and that each time they were successful in doing so.

Minato was running extremely late, and a distressed shadow clone from Kushina had begged him to hurry back home to help Naruto. He was not sure what exactly Kushina had meant to say, due to pace of her speaking, but from what he could decipher, things were not well.

Minato stared down at his paper work, and sighed reluctantly. Naruto was his main priority, and although he cherished Konoha with every fiber of his being, he cherished Naruto even more so. Minato stood up, removing his cloak and placing his paper work aside. He then locked the room as he used his Flying Thunder God technique to teleport home.

As Minato landed outside of his home, he felt a shiver run down his spine. All was silent as he stood and took a deep breath before breaching the threshold and entering the eerily silent abode.

A small glow of light illuminated the hallway as Minato walked in. He could hear Kushina's voice slowly drifted into his ears. She was using a much lighter and comforting tone than her normal highly energized voice. Kushina only used this voice when Naruto had just woken up from a night terror.

Minato slowly walked down the hallway and turned down the corner, which led to Naruto's room. Kushina turned to him, and spoke in a hushed tone.

"Minato, he fell asleep two hours ago, and woke up screaming in terror. He's been hiding in the corner ever since. I don't know what to do, dattebane!" Kushina's voice escalated, as she grew more anxious and worried about Naruto. Minato knew that it upset her that she could do nothing to help her ailing son. She had spoken about it once with him, because her pride would not allow her do so again; however, she had cried in Minato's arms for hours when she did admit it. As a mother, her greatest fear was being unable to do anything for her child.

Minato placed his hand on her shoulder and squeezed it lightly, a small smile gracing his features. "It will be okay, Kushina. Naruto will be fine, I promise." And with that, Minato entered Naruto's room.

The blankets on Naruto's bed were in a disastrous and tangled web and several pillows littered the floor. The chaos of the room reminded Minato of a battlefield in which he had once fought. In the furthest corner of the room, Naruto was holding on to his stuffed frog with all of his strength as he rocked back and forth. Tears slowly cascaded down his face and dropped onto the frog, making it look as though the frog was crying too.

Minato crouched down beside Naruto and slowly reached toward him.

"Naruto, it's okay now. Those creatures are not here. They cannot hurt us. It's only you and me." Minato spoke calmly and softly, so he did not frighten his distressed child.

Naruto's body stiffened for a moment, before slightly relaxing. His broken blue eyes cautiously looked up, a guarded expression on his face.

"Oto-san," His reply was feeble as more tears welled in his eyes. The young boy threw himself into his father's arms as his body was racked with continuous tears of agony.

Minato slowly patted his son's back, attempting to comfort his young child. It pained him to see his son so terrified. Naruto had always been like sunshine to he and Kushina, but when the darkness of night encased his son, there was no light left to see. It was incredibly heartbreaking as a parent to witness.

"It's okay, Naruto. I'm here to protect you." Minato slowly caressed Naruto's golden hair in a soothing manner. He could feel Naruto becoming less tense.

"Oto-san-" Naruto hiccupped as he nestled his face into his father's chest. Naruto then spoke softly, and Minato had to strain his ears in order to hear exactly what Naruto was trying to say. "Oto-san, why do they always come back?"

"I don't know, Naruto. But they always disappear, right?"

"Right…" Naruto said hesitantly. "But… but Oto-san, when I sleep they come back. They try to hurt you." Naruto's upper lip quivered as he looked up at Minato with big blue tear-filled eyes.

"I promise that they cannot hurt me nor can they hurt you, Naruto. Those creatures are make believe, like the fairytales your mother reads to you each night." Minato held his son tighter and picked him up. Minato then walked toward Naruto's bed, and set him down gently.

Naruto stared up at his father and smiled lightly. "Like a fairytale…" His whispered to himself, although Minato could hear him.

"Remember Naruto, you are a brave young boy. You're just like a hero from a fairytale." Minato smiled down at his son. He was happy to see that Naruto had calmed down, and that the fairytale analogy had redirected Naruto's thoughts. The beauty of children was that their thoughts could easily be redirected, especially Naruto's. If Minato could distract him from his fear, Naruto would be able to drift into a pleasant sleep. Minato was pleased with how quickly he had been able to change the scene. It typically took him much longer to do so, but apparently he had said the right thing, which pleased him immensely.

"Me? Just like the hero? But isn't Oto-san the hero?" Naruto's eyebrows crumbled in confusion, causing Minato to laugh at his son's perplexed expression.

"Everyone is the hero of their own story, Naruto. I am only here to guide you on your journey." Minato looked down at his son, and grinned happily. It was a somewhat goofy grin, but Naruto returned it nonetheless.

"With Oto-san as my helper, I cannot fail!" Naruto jumped up and stood firmly on his bed. He grabbed his stuffed frog and hugged it closely; a look of newly established determination was gracing his features.

Minato chuckled, and turned toward the door as he heard light footsteps approaching. Kushina stood in the doorway with a beautiful smile gracing her features. A lone tear fell down her face as she mouthed 'arigatou' to Minato. Minato blew her a kiss, causing a light pink blush to pool across her face.

"Mama, guess what, dattebayo!" Naruto jumped up and down excitedly. Kushina's smile brightened.

"What is it, Naruto?"

"Oto-san told me that I am a hero, dattebayo! Just like the heroes from the fairytales you read me!" Naruto's blue eyes were full of light, and a glint of mischief as well.

"Of course you're a hero, Naruto! But unlike fairytales, you're a real hero." Kushina bent down and looked into Naruto's eyes. Her eyes were shimmering with joy, which reflected in Naruto's eyes.

Naruto's eyes widened, "Mama thinks I am a hero too!"

"You're my hero, Naruto." Kushina said as she embraced him. Naruto hugged her back and giggled with glee. The warmth of Kushina's embrace comforted him, and he laid his head against her shoulder.

Kushina sat down on the bed, and Minato came and sat beside her. Together they sat in silence as Kushina slowly rocked Naruto. She hummed lightly, and Naruto attempted to keep his eyes open. He sleepily smiled at Minato, who had laid his hand on top of Naruto's head.

After night terrors like the one he had just suffered, Naruto loved spending time with his parents. It made him believe that nothing bad would ever happen to them. Now, he knew that he was their hero, which made him more determined than ever to beat the beasts that plagued his dreams. He knew he had to be brave for his mother and father because without him, they would be in danger. He fought to keep his eyes open, but this was a battle he could not win. He yawned and nuzzled his face into his mother's shoulder as a warm feeling engulfed his heart.

Kushina and Minato looked at Naruto and noticed the soft smile gracing his face. His breathing had evened out and his body was relaxed. Kushina bent down and kissed the top of his head. She then stood and placed Naruto in his bed. Minato grabbed the various blankets scattered throughout the room, and draped them over his son.

Together they stood hand in hand looking at their son. Both were relived to see that he was happy and that all signs of fear had vanished. His demeanor had returned to normal. Minato and Kushina both hoped that the night terrors would lessen over time, and that Naruto would remember that he was in fact the hero of his own tale.

As they quietly tip-toed out of Naruto's room, Kushina turned to Minato.

"Minato, arigatou." Kushina kissed Minato's cheek. "I do not know what I would have done had you not been here."

"You're my foundation, Kushina. I would not be the parent I am today without you by my side. Both of us helped Naruto." Minato squeezed her hand as he led her toward their bedroom.

All was well once more.

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**A/N: Okay, so it got a bit cheesy toward the end… but I'm a sucker for any MinaKush moments. They are such an adorable couple, and I always imagined them being one another's support system. As parents, I see them as the ultimate duo, working together to make Naruto happy.**

**There will be much more Namikaze/Uzumaki family interaction to come, so hopefully those of you who took the time to read this, enjoyed it. Until next time -jesokaa**


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